PEOPLE COMPLAIN about civil liberties being taken away, but there is a way to stop it that has always been there: juries that are fully informed in accordance with the common law. It stems from the Magna Carta.

Juries in this country were originally made up of citizens who knew about their rights, and took an oath to exercise their consciences in considering charges brought against fellow citizens. If only one juror did not like the law at issue or how it was applied, that one vote could prevent application of that law to that defendant in that case.

No judge would have told jurors they must follow his instructions and find facts, not law, or would have refused to allow information about all aspects of the charges to be given to the jury. He would have conducted proceedings as a mentor who was knowledgeable in the law and available for questioning and advice.

Our jury system is unique. It reflects the genius of those who provided for it in our Constitution. It affords a peaceful and quick way for citizens to get rid of bad laws and stop the bad application of good laws. Prosecutors wanting to maintain a good conviction rate for whatever reason would hesitate to pursue convictions under bad laws, and politicians concerned about voter disapproval would repeal those laws.

The Fugitive Slave Act, Prohibition, and other bad laws were repealed because not enough citizens supported them.

We simply cannot allow our political process or biased judges to take full stewardship of our rights. If people themselves do not start using their common-law jury rights soon, they will disappear entirely.

Think it could not happen? It is happening now. It was not so very long ago that certain crimes were exempted from jury trials. There are some jurisdictions now where a majority of jurors, instead of all of them, can bring a guilty verdict. Habeas corpus is being restricted for those convicted under bad laws. Potential jurors admitting knowledge of their jury rights now will not be seated on a jury. The list goes on.

For more information, put “informed jury” in the search bar on your computer and navigate around. If you do not have a computer, get someone who does have one to do it for you. Time is running out!